Methods and apparatus for the provision of user selected advanced closed captions

ABSTRACT

User customizable advanced closed caption capabilities are provided using closed caption information, such as that described in the Electronic Industries Association (EIA) Television Data Systems Subcommittee standards, EIA-608 or EIA-708. The invention allows the user to override the closed caption presentation format as selected by the originator (e.g., programmer or broadcaster), in order to select alternate presentation attributes based on the user&#39;s preference. The invention may also be implemented to customize other forms of text information (e.g., subtitles.). The invention also allows for storage and subsequent retrieval and review of text included within the closed caption information, which text serves as a transcript of the program. The methods and apparatus provided are independent of the type of delivery network, content format, and receiver type. In an example embodiment, closed caption information is extracted (e.g., by a closed caption processor  20 ) from a television signal  10 , which television signal  10  also contains corresponding audiovisual programming. The processor  20  determines whether one or more user selected attributes  12  have been set. At least one user selected attribute  12  is applied to at least a portion of the closed caption information (e.g., via a closed caption driver  30 ). The closed caption information is displayed (e.g., via a display driver  40  and graphics processor  45 ) on a display device  50  (e.g., a television screen) in accordance with the user selected attributes  12  via a graphical overlay on top of the audiovisual programming. In this manner, user selected advanced closed caption features can be provided using existing closed caption information contained in the television signal.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to the provision ofclosed captioning for television and other audiovisual programming. Inparticular, the present invention provides advanced closed captionfeatures using existing closed caption information carried in thetelevision signal. The invention allows a user to override the closedcaption presentation format as selected by the originator (e.g.,programmer or broadcaster), in order to select alternate presentationattributes based on the user's preference. User customizable advancedclosed caption features are provided, such as font size, font type, fontcolor, caption window position, caption window size, print direction,scroll direction, scroll rate, text opacity, background opacity, textjustification left, text justification right, text justification center,background color, and the like.

[0002] Closed captions are captions that are hidden in the video signal.Recovery of closed captions for display along with the televisionprogramming requires a closed caption decoder to be used in connectionwith the television receiver.

[0003] Beginning around 1980, closed captioning of video programs in theUnited States utilized Line 21 of the Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI)of a National Television Standards Committee (NTSC) television signal tocarry closed caption data. In 1990, Congress passed the TV DecoderCircuitry Act, which required closed caption decoders in most televisionreceivers. The TV Decoder Circuitry Act required the FederalCommunications Commission (FCC) to produce standards for closed captiondecoders. The FCC, with assistance from the Electronic IndustriesAssociation (EIA) Television Data Systems Subcommittee, has developedcertain standards for the delivery of closed captions, including theEIA-608 and the EIA-708 standards. One technique for communicating VBIdata, such as closed captions, in digital television data streams isdisclosed in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,844,615, entitledCommunication of VBI Data in Digital Television Data Streams,incorporated herein by reference.

[0004] The EIA-608 standard, developed in 1991, is based on the Line 21system and utilizes the DVS-157 standard for carriage format of theEIA-608 captions in digital cable systems. DVS-157 is a standard thathas been established for the cable industry by the Digital VideoSubcommittee (DVS) of the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers(“SCTE”). The EIA-608 closed captions are provided in a single,unalterable configuration.

[0005] The EIA-708 standard is a new standard which was developed inrecent years and which utilizes the carriage format specified in theAdvanced Television System Committee's (ATSC) A/53 standard for digitalvideo. The EIA-708 standard is meant to provide “advanced” closedcaption features in digital television signals at the Closed Captioningorigination device. The EIA-708 “advanced” features include, but are notlimited to, the ability to change certain closed caption features, suchas the location of the closed caption display, and the size and color ofthe closed caption text.

[0006] The A/53 format used by the EIA-708 standard is not backwardcompatible with existing digital cable systems. Millions of existingset-top terminals currently in use by consumers support the EIA-608standard carried digitally in DVS-157. These set-top terminals areincapable of being upgraded to accommodate the A/53 format utilized inthe EIA-708 standard. Replacing the existing set-top terminals withEIA-708 compatible systems would be costly to consumers and operatorsalike.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The present invention relates generally to the provision ofclosed captioning for television and other audio-visual programming. Inparticular, the present invention provides user customizable advancedclosed caption features using existing closed caption informationcarried in the television signal. The user customizable advanced closedcaption features include features such as font size, font type, fontcolor, caption window position, caption window size, print direction,scroll direction, scroll rate, text opacity, background opacity, textjustification left, text justification right, text justification center,background color, and the like. Closed caption information is extracted(e.g., by a closed caption processor) from a television signal, whichtelevision signal also contains corresponding television programming.The processor determines whether one or more user selected attributeshave been set. At least one user selected attribute is applied to atleast a portion of the closed caption information (e.g., via a closedcaption driver). The closed caption information is displayed (e.g., viaa display driver and graphics processor) on a display device (e.g., atelevision screen) in accordance with the user selected attributes via agraphical overlay on top of the television programming. In this manner,user selected advanced closed caption features can be provided at thedisplay device using existing closed caption information containedwithin the television signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The present invention will hereinafter be described inconjunction with the appended drawing figures, wherein like numeralsdenote like elements, and:

[0009]FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of theinvention;

[0010]FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a further exemplary embodiment ofthe invention;

[0011]FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a preferred embodiment of theinvention;

[0012]FIG. 4 shows an example of a menu box for entering the userselected advanced closed caption attributes; and

[0013]FIG. 5 shows a further example of a menu box for enteringadditional user selected advanced closed caption attributes.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] The ensuing detailed description provides preferred exemplaryembodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability,or configuration of the invention. Rather, the ensuing detaileddescription of the preferred exemplary embodiments will provide thoseskilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing apreferred embodiment of the invention. It should be understood thatvarious changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elementswithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the appended claims.

[0015] The invention is described in connection with closed captioninformation, which should be understood to include not only closedcaption text, but also any other information necessary for the displayof closed captions, including but not limited to contextual andgraphical information. However, it should be appreciated by thoseskilled in the art that the invention is not limited to customizing oftraditional closed caption information. The invention can also beimplemented to allow for customization of any type of textualinformation contained within or associated with a video signal, such assubtitles, stock tickers, advertising banners, emergency alert signals,and the like.

[0016]FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention. A television signal 10 containing closed captioninformation and associated television programming is provided to aprocessor 20. User selected closed caption attributes 12 are alsoprovided to the processor 20. The processor 20 extracts the closedcaption information. The user selected attributes 12 are applied to atleast a portion of the extracted closed caption information by a closedcaption driver 30. A display driver 40 provides the closed captioninformation with user selected attributes to a graphics processor 45.The graphics processor 45 provides the closed caption information withthe user selected attributes applied thereto to a display device 50. Theclosed caption driver 30 and the display driver 40 may be implemented,e.g., as software or firmware on or associated with the processor 20.The graphics processor 45 is implemented in hardware and firmware.

[0017] As shown in FIG. 2, the television signal 10 may be received at atuner 60 and demodulated at demodulator 70 prior to the extracting ofthe closed caption information at the processor. In addition, ifscrambled, the television signal 10 will be descrambled at descrambler80 prior to the extracting of the closed caption information. It shouldbe appreciated by those skilled in the art that a standard MPEG-2transport and video processor will also be necessary for processingdigital data streams. This MPEG processor can be implemented as part ofprocessor 20 or as a separate processor associated therewith. Thoseskilled in the art will appreciate that the digital television signal isforwarded from the video processor (VDP) on the bus to a graphicsprocessor. Next the signal is forwarded to a device that controls busand burst mode digital video transfers, then the signal is forwarded towhere VBI insertion is performed (from the information forwarded to it)and finally digital/analog (NTSC) conversion is performed.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment of the invention as shown in FIG. 3,user selected advanced closed captions are provided. Closed captioninformation is extracted (e.g., by a closed caption processor 20) from atelevision signal 10, which television signal also containscorresponding television programming. The processor 20 determineswhether one or more user selected attributes 12 have been set. At leastone user selected attribute 12 is applied to at least a portion of theclosed caption information (e.g., via a closed caption driver 30). Theclosed caption information is displayed (e.g., via a display driver 40and graphics processor 45) on a display device 50 (e.g., a televisionscreen) in accordance with the user selected attributes 12 via agraphical overlay on top of the television programming. In this manner,user selected advanced closed caption features can be provided usingexisting closed caption information contained within the televisionsignal.

[0019] The invention may be implemented as part of a set-top terminal, adigital television, a personal computer, a digital video recorder, adigital video disk player, or other suitable device. Alternatively, theinvention may be implemented in a stand-alone device 200 as shown inFIG. 3 which receives a television or other video signal 10 and iscoupled to a display device 50. The user selected attributes may beapplied to closed caption information which is received (along withcorresponding television programming) via a personal versatile recorder(PVR), a set-top terminal, a digital television, a personal computer, avideo cassette recorder, a digital video recorder, a digital video diskplayer, or similar device. In the alternative, the television signal 10containing the closed caption information and associated televisionprogramming may be received via a delivery network, such as a cable orsatellite television network, a terrestrial network, the Internet, orother suitable communication network. Those skilled in the art willappreciate that the television signals discussed herein include not onlytraditional types of television signals, but also any non-traditionaltelevision signals containing closed caption or other textual data. Forexample, the television signal 10 may comprise an analog signal, abroadcast or on-demand digital signal, singlecast or multicast streamingmedia, and the like.

[0020] The user selected attributes 12 may include font size, font type,font color, caption window position, caption window size, printdirection, scroll direction, scroll rate, text opacity, backgroundopacity, text justification left, text justification right, textjustification center, background color, and the like.

[0021] The closed caption information may be displayed in one or moreclosed caption boxes. Multiple closed caption boxes may be displayedsimultaneously (e.g., for use with picture-in-picture features or toprovide viewing of the closed caption text for more than one channelwhile viewing a single television program).

[0022] The closed caption information may be tagged with an identifierthat distinguishes it from the television programming data. The closedcaption information can then be extracted from the television signalbased on the identifier. The television signal may comprise an MPEG-2transport stream. The closed caption information may be carried in auser data field of video data syntax of the MPEG-2 transport stream. Insuch an embodiment, extracting the closed caption information may beperformed based on the user data field. This applies when working with,for example, EIA-608 standard closed caption information. Pursuant tothe EIA-608 standard, closed caption bytes in DVS-157 are delivered inthe user_data syntax of the video syntax of DVS-018, which is compatiblewith the video syntax of A/53, an ATSC Digital Television Standard. Theencoder (at the origination location) incorporates the caption bytes, asforwarded via one of its interfaces, following the syntax in user_dataof the video syntax of a digital stream. The decoder (e.g., set-topterminal), when decoding a digital stream receives these bytes in theaforementioned format, extracts them and transcodes them as an EIA-608VBI signal on the analog signal. This analog signal is a result of thedecoder decoding the digital (MPEG-2) stream and converting it to ananalog NTSC signal.

[0023] The closed caption information may comprise one of EIA-608 closedcaption information or EIA-708 closed caption information.

[0024] The user selected attributes can be entered via a pop-up menu, adialogue box, a pull-down window menu, or other suitable mechanism orcombination of mechanisms. For example, FIG. 4 shows a menu 300 of userselectable closed caption attributes. FIG. 4 shows closed caption boxattributes 305 such as box position 310, box width 315, box height 320,border 325, opacity 330, box color 335, priority 340, show caption box345, lock row growth 350 and lock column growth 355. Closed caption textattributes 360 are also shown, including justification 365, font size370, opacity 375, font type 380, font color 385, and anchor point 390.FIG. 5 shows a menu 400 of closed caption configuration tags, such asthose provided pursuant to the EIA-708 standard, which indicate the typeof text content being displayed. The tags 410 include indicators of suchas dialog (normal words spoken by characters in the programming), sourceor speaker identification (name of the speaker or source of sound),electronically reproduced voice (spoken audio from a phone, radio, PAsystem, and the like), dialog in language other than primary programlanguage, voiceover (narration or other disembodied voice not heard bythe program's characters), audible translation (voice of disembodiedtranslator not heard by the program's characters), subtitle translation(text showing a translation into the primary language of the program),voice quality description (description of a voice quality), song lyrics(words being sung), sound effect description (a description of anonverbal sound or music being heard by the program's characters),musical score description (a description of background music not heardby the character's in the program), expletive (an interjectory word orexpression, possibly profane or harsh).

[0025] As shown in FIG. 3, the user selected attributes may be stored inmemory 90. Multiple attribute settings may be provided such thatdifferent users can store their respective preferred attributes forfuture use.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the processor 20 maydynamically determine the location of one or more objects of interest ina displayed television scene. Once an object of interest is identified,at least one of the user selected attributes 12 can be adjusted to makethe presence of the displayed closed caption information lessdistracting based on the location of the one or more objects ofinterest.

[0027] The closed caption information may be stored in memory 90. Theclosed caption information may be stored on one of a personal versatilerecorder, a digital television, a digital video recorder, a digitalvideo disk player, a set-top terminal, a personal computer, or othersuitable device. The user selected attributes 12 may include the optionof automatically generating a transcript of the television programmingfrom the stored closed caption information. The transcript may then beprinted from an associated printer 100.

[0028] User controlled replay of the stored closed caption informationmay be provided. Onscreen review of closed caption text from the storedclosed caption information may also be provided, which may be by a fullscreen display or a partial screen display. Page numbers, time and date,and program title may be inserted into the stored closed captioninformation.

[0029] Closed caption text from the stored closed caption informationmay be transferred to writeable media. The writeable media may comprisememory 90 contained within the same device which provides the advancedclosed caption features. In the alternative, the writeable media may belocated in a device separate from that which provides the advancedclosed caption features. For example, the closed caption text from thestored closed caption information may be transferred (e.g., in Rich TextFormat (RTF)) to a personal computer 110 for storage on a hard drive, CDROM, diskette, or any other suitable storage device. Similarly, theclosed caption text may also be transferred to a printer 100, a personalversatile recorder (PVR) 120, a digital television, a digital videorecorder, a digital video disk player, a set top terminal, or othersuitable device for further personal use or manipulation.

[0030] File management functions may be provided for multiple storedclosed caption files, wherein each stored closed caption filecorresponds to a single television program. The file managementfunctions may be provided by a personal versatile recorder 120, adigital video recorder, a digital television, a digital video diskplayer, a set-top terminal, a personal computer 110, or other suitabledevice.

[0031] Bookmarks may be inserted and subsequently located in the closedcaption text of the stored closed caption information by a user via,e.g., remote control.

[0032] In an alternate embodiment, the currently displayed closedcaption information may be removed after a predetermined time period inwhich no closed caption information is received.

[0033] In a further embodiment of the invention, dynamic adjustment ofclosed caption text color is provided when a transparent closed captionbackground is selected. When a transparent background is selected, theclosed caption text is presented directly over the televisionprogramming. As the color of the displayed television programming maychange periodically, there exists the possibly of conflict with thechosen color of the closed caption text. By dynamically adjusting textcolor, the closed caption text will always be visible over thetelevision programming. Those skilled in the art will appreciate thatsuch dynamic adjustment is more appropriately provided at theorigination site rather than at a destination location due to thedifficulty in the processing (real-time) which would be required at thedestination or viewing location.

[0034] Unicode character technology may be utilized in order to provideinternationalization of the closed caption information. Unicode is aninternational standard for representing strings (concatenatedcharacters) using 16-bit characters (65,536 possible characters). TheUnicode standard allows for non-English alphabet characters andgraphical symbols.

[0035] In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the user selectedattributes 12 may be automatically overridden when an Emergency AlertSignal is received in order to avoid overlap of the displayed closedcaption information with a display of the Emergency Alert Signal.

[0036] The user selected attributes may be disabled on a per programbasis or a per channel basis.

[0037] It should now be appreciated that the invention providesadvantageous methods and apparatus which allow user selectable advancedclosed caption features to be generated using existing closed captioninformation. Further, the present invention accommodates both theEIA-608 standard and the EIA-708 standard closed captions.

[0038] Although the invention has been described in connection withvarious illustrated embodiments, numerous modifications and adaptationsmay be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as set forth in the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for provision of user selected advancedclosed captions, comprising the steps of: extracting closed captioninformation from a television signal having corresponding televisionprogramming; determining whether one or more user selected attributeshave been set; applying at least one user selected attribute to at leasta portion of the closed caption information; and displaying the closedcaption information on a display device in accordance with the userselected attributes via a graphical overlay on top of the televisionprogramming.
 2. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein: thetelevision signal is received, demodulated, and descrambled prior tosaid extracting of said closed caption information.
 3. A method inaccordance with claim 1, wherein the user selected advanced closedcaption attributes are applied to closed caption information receivedvia one of a delivery network, a personal versatile recorder (PVR), aset-top terminal, a digital television, a personal computer, a videocassette recorder, a digital video recorder, or a digital video diskplayer.
 4. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the provision ofuser selected advanced closed captions occurs at one of a personalversatile recorder (PVR), a set-top terminal, a digital television, apersonal computer, a digital video recorder, or a digital video diskplayer.
 5. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the userselected attributes comprise at least one of font size, font type, fontcolor, caption window position, caption window size, print direction,scroll direction, scroll rate, text opacity, background opacity, textjustification left, text justification right, text justification center,and background color.
 6. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein:the closed caption information is displayed in one or more closedcaption boxes.
 7. A method in accordance with claim 6, wherein multipleclosed caption boxes are displayed simultaneously.
 8. A method inaccordance with claim 1, wherein: the closed caption information istagged with an identifier that distinguishes it from televisionprogramming data; and the closed caption information is extracted basedon the identifier.
 9. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein: thetelevision signal comprises an MPEG-2 transport stream; the closedcaption information is carried in a user data field of video data syntaxof the MPEG-2 transport stream; and the closed caption information isextracted based on the user data field.
 10. A method in accordance withclaim 1, wherein said closed caption information comprises one ofEIA-608 closed caption information or EIA-708 closed captioninformation.
 11. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the userselected attributes are entered via at least one of a pop-up menu, adialogue box, and a pull-down window menu.
 12. A method in accordancewith claim 1, further comprising the step of: storing the user selectedattributes in memory.
 13. A method in accordance with claim 1, furthercomprising the steps of: dynamically determining the location of one ormore objects of interest in a displayed television scene; andautomatically adjusting at least one of the user selected attributes tomake the presence of the displayed closed caption information lessdistracting based on the location of the one or more objects ofinterest.
 14. A method in accordance with claim 1, comprising thefurther step of: storing the closed caption information in memory.
 15. Amethod in accordance with claim 14, wherein the closed captioninformation is stored on one of a personal versatile recorder, a digitaltelevision, a digital video recorder, a digital video disk player, aset-top terminal, or a personal computer.
 16. A method in accordancewith claim 14, wherein the user selected attributes include the optionof automatically generating a transcript of the television programmingfrom the stored closed caption information.
 17. A method in accordancewith claim 16, comprising the further step of printing the transcript.18. A method in accordance with claim 14, comprising the further stepof: providing user controlled replay of the stored closed captioninformation.
 19. A method in accordance with claim 14, comprising thefurther step of: providing on-screen review of closed caption text fromthe stored closed caption information.
 20. A method in accordance withclaim 14, comprising the further step of: inserting into the storedclosed caption information at least one of page numbers, time and dateof storing, and television program title.
 21. A method in accordancewith claim 14, comprising the further step of transferring closedcaption text from the stored closed caption information to writeablemedia.
 22. A method in accordance with claim 14, comprising the furtherstep of: transferring closed caption text from the stored closed captioninformation to one of a printer, a personal versatile recorder (PVR), adigital television, a digital video recorder, a digital video diskplayer, a set top terminal, or a personal computer.
 23. A method inaccordance with claim 14, comprising the further step of: providing filemanagement functions for multiple stored closed caption files, whereineach stored closed caption file corresponds to a single televisionprogram.
 24. A method in accordance with claim 23, wherein said filemanagement functions are provided by one of a personal versatilerecorder, a digital television, a digital video recorder, a digitalvideo disk player, a set-top terminal, or a personal computer.
 25. Amethod in accordance with claim 14, comprising the further steps of:providing for the insertion of bookmarks into closed caption text of thestored closed caption information; and providing for the location of thebookmarks inserted into the closed caption text.
 26. A method inaccordance with claim 1, comprising the further step of: removingdisplayed closed caption information after a predetermined time periodin which no closed caption information is received.
 27. A method inaccordance with claim 1, comprising the further step of: providingdynamic adjustment of closed caption text color when a transparentclosed caption background is selected.
 28. A method in accordance withclaim 1, comprising the further step of: utilizing Unicode charactertechnology for internationalization of closed caption information.
 29. Amethod in accordance with claim 1, comprising the further step of:receiving an Emergency Alert Signal; and automatically overriding theuser selected attributes in order to avoid overlap of the displayedclosed caption information with a display of the Emergency Alert Signal.30. A method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the user selectedattributes can be disabled on at least one of a per program basis or aper channel basis.
 31. Apparatus for provision of user selected advancedclosed captions, comprising: a processor for: extracting closed captioninformation from a television signal having corresponding televisionprogramming; determining whether one or more user selected attributeshave been set; a closed caption driver for applying at least one userselected attribute to at least a portion of the closed captioninformation; a display driver; and a graphics processor for displayingthe closed caption information received from the display driver on adisplay device in accordance with the user selected attributes via agraphical overlay on top of the television programming.
 32. Apparatus inaccordance with claim 31, further comprising: a receiver for receivingthe television signal; a demodulator for demodulating the televisionsignal; and a descrambler for descrambling the television signal. 33.Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein the user selectedadvanced closed caption attributes are applied to closed captioninformation received via one of a delivery network, a personal versatilerecorder (PVR), a set-top terminal, a digital television, a personalcomputer, a video cassette recorder, a digital video recorder, or adigital video disk player.
 34. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31,wherein the apparatus comprises one of a personal versatile recorder(PVR), a digital television, a digital video recorder, a digital videodisk player, a set top terminal, or a personal computer.
 35. Apparatusin accordance with claim 31, wherein the user selected attributescomprise at least one of font size, font type, font color, captionwindow position, caption window size, print direction, scroll direction,scroll rate, text opacity, background opacity, text justification left,text justification right, text justification center, and backgroundcolor.
 36. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein: the closedcaption information is displayed in one or more closed caption boxes.37. Apparatus in accordance with claim 36, wherein multiple closedcaption boxes are displayed simultaneously.
 38. Apparatus in accordancewith claim 31, wherein: the closed caption information is tagged with anidentifier that distinguishes it from television programming data; andthe closed caption information is extracted based on the identifier. 39.Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein: the television signalcomprises an MPEG-2 transport stream; the closed caption information iscarried in a user data field of video data syntax of the MPEG-2transport stream; and the closed caption information is extracted basedon the user data field.
 40. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31,wherein said closed caption information comprises one of EIA-608 closedcaption information or EIA-708 closed caption information.
 41. Apparatusin accordance with claim 31, wherein the user selected attributes areentered via at least one of a pop-up menu, a dialogue box, and apull-down window menu.
 42. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31,further comprising: a memory device for storing the user selectedattributes in memory.
 43. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31,wherein: the location of one or more objects of interest in a displayedtelevision scene are dynamically determined; and at least one of theuser selected attributes is automatically adjusted to make the presenceof the displayed closed caption information less distracting based onthe location of the one or more objects of interest.
 44. A method inaccordance with claim 31, further comprising: memory for storing theclosed caption information.
 45. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44,wherein the apparatus comprises one of a personal versatile recorder(PVR), a digital television, a digital video recorder, a digital videodisk player, a set top terminal, or a personal computer.
 46. Apparatusin accordance with claim 44, wherein the user selected attributesinclude the option of automatically generating a transcript of thetelevision programming from the stored closed caption information. 47.Apparatus in accordance with claim 46, wherein the transcript isprinted.
 48. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44, wherein usercontrolled replay of the stored closed caption information is provided.49. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44, wherein on-screen review ofclosed caption text from the stored closed caption information isprovided.
 50. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44, wherein at leastone of page numbers, time and date of storing, and television programtitle is inserted into the stored closed caption information.
 51. Amethod in accordance with claim 44, wherein closed caption text from thestored closed caption information is transferred to writeable media. 52.Apparatus in accordance with claim 44, wherein closed caption text fromthe stored closed caption information is transferred to one of aprinter, a personal versatile recorder (PVR), a digital television, adigital video recorder, a digital video disk player, a set top terminal,or a personal computer.
 53. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44,wherein the processor provides file management functions for multiplestored closed caption files, wherein each stored closed caption filecorresponds to a single television program.
 54. Apparatus in accordancewith claim 53, wherein said apparatus comprises one of a personalversatile recorder, a digital television, a digital video recorder, adigital video disk player, a set-top terminal, or a personal computer.55. Apparatus in accordance with claim 44, wherein: inserting ofbookmarks into closed caption text of the stored closed captioninformation is provided for; and locating of the bookmarks inserted intoclosed caption text of the closed caption information is provided for.56. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein the displayed closedcaption information is removed after a predetermined time period inwhich no closed caption information is received.
 57. Apparatus inaccordance with claim 31, wherein closed caption text color isdynamically adjusted when a transparent closed caption background isselected.
 58. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein Unicodecharacter technology is utilized for internationalization of closedcaption information.
 59. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein:in the event an Emergency Alert Signal is received, the user selectedattributes are automatically overridden in order to avoid overlap of thedisplayed closed caption information with a display of the EmergencyAlert Signal.
 60. Apparatus in accordance with claim 31, wherein theuser selected attributes can be disabled on at least one of a perprogram basis or a per channel basis.
 61. A method for the provision ofuser selected advanced closed captions, comprising the steps of:extracting the closed caption information from a television signalhaving associated television programming; determining whether one ormore user selected attributes have been set; applying at least one userselected attribute to at least a portion of the closed captioninformation; displaying the closed caption information on a displaydevice in accordance with the user selected attributes via a graphicaloverlay on top of the television programming; dynamically determiningthe location of one or more objects of interest in a displayedtelevision scene; and automatically adjusting at least one of the userselected attributes to make the presence of the displayed closed captioninformation less distracting based on the location of the one or moreobjects of interest.
 62. Apparatus for the provision of user selectedadvanced closed captions, comprising: a processor for: extracting theclosed caption information from a television signal having associatedtelevision programming; determining whether one or more user selectedattributes have been set; a closed caption driver for applying at leastone user selected attribute to at least a portion of the closed captioninformation; and a display driver; a graphics processor for displayingthe closed caption information received from the display driver on adisplay device in accordance with the user selected attributes via agraphical overlay on top of the television programming; wherein: thelocation of one or more objects of interest in a displayed televisionscene are dynamically determined; and at least one of the user selectedattributes is automatically adjusted to make the presence of thedisplayed closed caption information less distracting based on thelocation of the one or more objects of interest.